Square for an online store?

I love Square. They single-handedly revolutionized the way small businesses handled credit-card transactions — for the better. Want proof? Read this archive post about how merchant services used to be handled before Square. Huge percentages off the top for the merchant-service provider, expensive equipment, disuse fees, multi-year commitments and monthly fees.

It was horrible.

Square came along with a free dongle, reasonable per-transaction rates, no monthly fees, no commitments and no disuse fees.

And suddenly, folks like us were swiping credit cards at conventions and seeing increased sales as a result.

So it pains me — real pain — to give one of their initiatives a negative review. But I must.

If you’re a Square user, you probably got an e-mail a few days ago announcing Square’s new push to enter the online storefront arena.